Liquid-separating device

ABSTRACT

A disc is rotatably mounted in a position to be partially exposed to, or immersed in, a liquid. Slow rotation of the disc causes liquid adhering to the disc to move upward into a position where wipers remove most of the adhering film, and divert it into a drainage trough or collector. In the simplest form of the invention, the disc is of magnetic-responsive material, and the wipers are flexible strips having permanent magnetism.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Separation of one liquid from a heavier liquid is commonly done byskimming or by centrifuging. A common occurrence of the use of either ofthese procedures is the separation of an oil contaminant from apredominant mass of water. Many coolants used in conjunction withmachining operations are water-based, and become contaminated withlubricating oil. Re-use of the coolant is made more effective by theremoval of the lubricating oil. This removal has the additional effectof stopping the tank of liquid from functioning as a bacterialincubator. An oil film over the water effectively excludes oxygen fromthe water, which would otherwise attack the bacteria. The exposure of awater film to the air on the disc (after the oil has been substantiallyremoved) by continuing the disc rotation further improves theoxygenating process. The removal of the oil film also eliminates a classof bacteria that thrives in the oil itself, tending to produce strongodors and rancidity. The use of a partially-immersed rotating disc forremoving the oil is not broadly new. These machines have had variousforms of spring-loaded wiping devices securely mounted on the machineframe, and deliver the oil to a collector.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a rotating-disc device of the simplestand most reliable construction known to applicant. The disc is made ofmagnetic-responsive material, and the wipers are preferably flexiblestrips of material having permanent magnetism. These features eliminatethe problem of mounting the wipers and maintaining a resilient pressureuniformly across the swept area of the disc. The need for an accurateplacement of a disc with respect to the wipers is also eliminated.Placement of the wipers is provided merely by abutments preventing thewipers from riding the disc, or from being moved radially with respectto it.

The invention also provides a method for decanting liquids andsemi-liquids from a container, and further provides a series of rotatingdisc devices that are inter-related to transfer liquid progressivelyfrom one disc to the succeeding one. A method of removing oil spillsfrom a body of water is also included, in which a vessel (preferably abarge) is equipped with a series of axially-spaced discs across the bow,and is moved through an oil-contaminated area.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of the invention, showndetached from a tank of liquid to which it is normally secured.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of one of the wiper elements of the deviceshown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the machine shown in FIG. 1,with the motor, disc, and wipers detached.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the structure shown in FIG. 3, from theopposite quarter.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of the machine shown in FIG. 1, shownattached to the rim of a tank (appearing in section).

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the underside of the machineillustrated in FIG. 1, with the motor removed.

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6, but showing a modified form of theinvention.

FIG. 8 is a side elevation of a form of the invention used in removingoil spills from open water.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of the barge structure illustrated in FIG. 8,and illustrating the working relationship of the components.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a modified form of the invention havinga different structure from that appearing in FIG. 1.

FIG. 11 is a sectional elevation of the device illustrated in FIG. 10,shown attached to a tank appearing in section.

FIG. 12 is a view of a further modification of the inventionincorporating a series of disc devices interrelated to transfer liquidfrom one to the other in sequence.

FIG. 13 is a sectional elevation of the machine shown in FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged view at the overlapping area between thesuccessive discs of the device shown on FIGS. 12 and 13.

FIG. 15 is a plan view of the locating plate used to position the wipingstrips of the device appearing in FIGS. 12 and 13.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 1 through 6, the two V-shaped trough elements 20 and21 are secured together to the spaced blocks 22 and 23 by screws asshown at 24a-b and 25a-b. The blocks 22 and 23 form a clamp inconjunction with the clamping screws 26 and 27. Referring to FIG. 5, therim structure of a tank 28 is received between the blocks 22 and 23,after which the clamping screws 26 and 27 can be tightened to secure thedevice in position. The rim structure will commonly include a stiffeningangle as shown at 29, which accounts for the distance between the blocks22 and 23. The device should be mounted in such a position that the disc30 intersects the surface 31 of the liquid within the tank 28. Thetroughs 20 and 21 should be at a downward grade from the area over theinside of the tank of at least 5 degrees to the horizontal. Thecontinuing rotation of the disc 30 by the motor 32 in the directionshown in FIG. 5 will cause liquid adhering to the disc to move around tothe wipers 33 and 34 which remove the adhering film, and permit it todrain into the troughs 20 and 21.

At the inner end of the troughs, a block 35 is secured to the troughs inthe same manner as the blocks 22 and 23. The block 35 supports amounting plate 36 provided with the holes 37 and 38 for receivingfastenings securing the motor 32. The plate 36 may be either screwed orwelded to the block 35. The central holes 39 in the mounting plate arefor receiving the shaft 40 extending from the motor unit 32, andsupporting the disc 30.

The wipers 33 and 34 are preferably strips of material similar to thatcommonly used to hold refrigerator doors closed against the pressure ofthe sealing gaskets. The material forming these strips is usually aflexible plastic material impregnated with metal particles havingpermanent magnetism. The disc 30 is of steel, or somemagnetic-responsive material, with the result that the wipers holdthemselves securely to the disc, and generate a uniform wiping actionacross the swept surface. Because of this tendency to secure themselvesto the disc, the machine need only prevent the wipers from riding thedisc, or from being displaced radially with respect to the axis ofrotation. These functions are provided by the offsets 41 and 42 machinedin the walls of the troughs 20 and 21, and by the shoulders 43 and 44resulting from these offsets. The wipers rest against the offsetsurfaces 41 and 42, and the shoulders 43 and 44 prevent the wipers frommoving in the direction of the troughs as a result of a placement of theaxis of rotation of the shaft 40 slightly below the line of contact ofthe wipers with the disc 30. If this axis of rotation is slightly abovethe line of contact of the wipers 33, a slight tendency will exist forthe wipers to move toward the axis of rotation. This is prevented by theengagement of the ends of the wipers themselves with the shaft 40, andby the fastening (not shown) securing the disc 30 to the shaft 40. Theslight tendency for wipers to move radially is due to the frictionalforces being disposed at a slight angle to the line of contact of thewipers, which results from displacement of the axis of rotation fromthis line. The provision of a plurality of holes 37-39 permits themounting of the disc and its drive at varying vertical positions toaccommodate the machine to tank structure having different normal liquidlevels. In the arrangement shown in FIGS. 1-6, guide blocks as shown at45 and 46 are secured to the underside of the troughs 20 and 21 tostabilize the edge of the disc disposed between them. These blocks arepreferably secured to the trough sections by screws as shown at 47 inFIG. 1. With this arrangement, the disc exhibits less tendency tooscillate laterally, and thus generate an undesirable motion of thewipers with respect to the surfaces supporting them. Referring to FIG.7, a modified form of the invention utilizes a slot 48 in the clampingblock 49 to serve the function of the guide blocks 45 and 46. Thisarrangement has the advantage of simplicity. The troughs 20 and 21, andthe opposing guideblock 22 and clamping screws 26 and 27 can be the sameas in the structure shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 illustrates schematically a system for removing oil spills fromopen water. A barge 50 is provided with a group of axially-spaced discs51 rotatably mounted on troughs 52 at the bow of the barge 50. Theassembly of discs 51 is rotated by a motor unit 53, which may be eitherelectrical or hydraulic. Appropriate conduits or wires 54 extend to anappropriate source of energy (not shown) within the barge 50. The bargemay be pushed by a vessel such as a tugboat 55 through an areacontaminated by an oil spill, and the rotation of the disc assembly 51and its associate wipers 56 will induce a pickup of the oil on the watersurface, and drainage of it along the troughs 52 into containers 57 ofconvenient size carried within the barge 50.

FIG. 10 illustrates a modified form of the invention, which is relatedto FIG. 1. It differs from FIG. 1 in the configuration of the trough andclamp structure. In FIG. 10, the troughs 20 and 21 of FIG. 1 have beenreplaced by the channel-shaped member 58. The disc 30, the motor 32, andthe motor-mounting structure generally indicated at 59 correspond to thestructure shown in FIG. 1. The disc 30 is received within a slot in thefloor 60 of the channel-shaped trough 58, and an abutment block 61 issecured to this floor, preferably by spot-welding. This abutment blockserves to prevent movement of the wipers 62-63 away from the axis ofrotation of the disc 30. This assembly is clamped to a tank structure 28by the U-shaped member 64, which is preferably also secured to the floor60 by spot-welding. The clamping screws 65 are in threaded engagementwith the wall 66 of the member 64, and with the nut 67 preferably weldedto it. Guide blocks as shown at 68 on the opposite sides of the disc 30are optional in this arrangement, as the slot in the floor 60 of thetrough 58 may perform this function. The presence of the blocks tends tolocalize the wear, and are replaceable. The motor units 32 in both theFIG. 1 and FIG. 10 modifications are preferably slow-speed andelectrically operated, with energy being supplied through the wires 69.The rate of rotation of the disc 30 must be slow enough to avoid anysubstantial tendency for centrifugal force to throw off an accumulatedfilm, or to produce a substantial amount of turbulence in the liquidsuch as might tend to isolate an oil film from the water adjacent thedisc. In the operation of the machine, the oil exhibits a preference forthe disc with respect to the water, and is picked up off the surface ofthe water and delivered to the wipers. With a disc of approximately 11inches in diameter, a rotational speed of approximately 7 revolutionsper minute has been found very effective to remove accumulations of oilfrom the surface of a tank containing both oil and a water-basedsolution.

Referring to FIGS. 12-15, an arrangement is shown for removingaccumulations of oil from the surface of a liquid within a containerwhich has considerable depth, and within which the level may be expectedto vary over a range in excess of half the diameter of a disc. Thecontainer 69 is shown equipped with a trough and clamp assembly 70similar to that appearing in FIG. 10. A pair of vertical beams 71 and 72are secured to the end of the trough assembly 70 with the aid of thebridge bar 73. These parallel beams provide for the rotative support ofthe shafts 74-77. The shafts 75-77 are equipped with discs 78-80, andwith sprockets 81-83, respectively. A sprocket 84 is provided on theshaft 74 and a drive sprocket 85 is provided for interconnection with asuitable motor unit (not shown). Such a unit may be mounted convenientlyon the top member 86 interconnecting the beams 71 and 72. In view of theminimal torque required to rotate the discs, it will normally beunnecessary to provide idler sprockets to maintain the interengagementof the chain 87 with the sprockets 84 and 81-83.

Wipers as shown at 88 and 89 are interposed between the discs 80-79 and79-78. These wipers are similar to those discussed in the previousmodifications of the invention. They are located in position by thebrackets 90 and 91, each of which includes a spacer block as shown at 92in FIG. 14 and a locating plate 93. This plate has a slot 94 with oneedge serrated as shown at 95. Wiper strips are received within thenarrowest portion of the slot 94 as shown in FIG. 14, and rotation ofthe disc 80 in the direction shown will induce a deposit of oil alongthe upper edge of the wiper which will flow laterally across to the disc79 via the openings provided by the serrated edge 95. The oil thusexposed to the disc 79 will be picked up and carried in similar fashionupward to be received by the disc 78, from which it will be deposited inthe trough 70. The bracket assemblies are secured to the beam 72 bybolts as shown at 96 and 97 in FIG. 14. It is interesting to note thatthe arrangement shown in FIGS. 12 and 13 can begin its operationinitially with the liquid near the top of the tank, and can proceedwithout interruption during periods in which, for one reason or another,the liquid within the tank 69 might fall to a level approaching thebottom.

It is also significant that the device shown in the .[.FIG.]..Iadd.FIGS.Iaddend.. 1, 10, or 13 can be used entirely as a pump, ratherthan as a device for separating one liquid from another. This isparticularly valuable in cases where it becomes desirable to move smallquantities of viscous liquids that otherwise require expensive hydraulicpumping equipment. Many situations arise where it becomes desirable tomerely remove a liquid from one container and deposit it in another, asin metered mixing operations. The readiness with which the components ofthis mechanism can be cleaned make this pumping aspect a very desirablemode of operation. It is usable in most instance where the procedurecommonly referred to as "decanting" is used. A device of this naturemakes it unnecessary to progressively tilt a cumbersome container ofliquid or semi-liquid, as an alternative to the use of expensivehydraulic pumps of standard design.

We claim:
 1. A machine for elevating liquid material, said machineincluding frame means and plate means rotatably mounted on said framemeans, and also including wiping means and collector means adapted toremove liquid from said plate means, and drive means adapted to rotatesaid plate means, wherein the improvement comprises:at least two platesconstituting said plate means mounted respectively on spaced axis ofrotation and in overlapping relationship; bracket means interposedbetween said plate, and mounted on said frame, said bracket means havinga receptacle slot, and said wiping means is a flexible strip normallyreceived in said slot and engaging said overlapping plates along theopposite edges of said strip, said bracket means constituting the solesupporting and retaining means for said strip, said drive means beingoperative to induce a common direction of rotation of said plates; andwherein said slot is normally inclined to the horizontal, and has aserrated edge on the side thereof facing the direction of rotation ofone of said plates, and said one plate is mounted below the other ofsaid plates.